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It was a coalition campaign that few expected to have. A handful of employees at the Amazon warehouse on Staten Island, operating without the support of international operating agencies, took on one of the most powerful companies in the world.
And, somehow, they won.
Workers on the site voted for the border to form a union, according to the results released Friday, in one of the biggest successes of organized workers in the generation.
Workers cast 2,654 votes to be represented by the Amazon Labor Union and 2,131 against, giving the union a 10 percent chance of winning, according to the National Labor Relations Board. More than 8,300 warehouse workers, the only Amazon in New York City, were eligible to vote.
Success in Staten Island comes at a time of crisis for unions in the United States, which saw the share of corporate workers drop last year to 10.3 percent, the lowest number in decades, even though many people needed workers, pockets of successful works. and the rise of human consent.
Critics – including labor officials – allege that the law enforcement agencies did not spend enough money or showed adequate planning for the campaign and that they often bet on the wrong fights. Some say that corruption is temporary.
The success of the Amazon deal, the first company in the United States after years of encouraging employees there, offers a great opportunity to change the process and add to its recent success. Many union leaders see Amazon as a threat to the industry because it affects many industries and often controls them.
But the success of a lesser-known independent partnership with fewer relationships with existing groups seems to raise many questions for the working class as it responds: at least, if something is broken and a social cohesion system can be resolved. instead replacing larger organizations such as the one on Staten Island.
Amazon must strongly oppose the success of this agreement. A statement he did not sign on his corporate blog said, “We are disappointed with the outcome of the election on Staten Island because we believe that having a direct relationship with the company is good for our employees.”
The Staten Island results followed what appears to be a bit of a loss to Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union at Amazon’s largest Alabama warehouse. Voting is so close that the results will not be known for several weeks because rival voters are being sued.
The Greatest Success of Unionization in Amazon
The staff at the Amazon warehouse on Staten Island presented one of the greatest achievements of the organized civilization generation.
The incredible resilience shown by organizations in all of these areas means that Amazon will face challenges over the years for other companies from the working class and the motivating working class. As recent league successes at Starbucks have shown, success in one place can inspire others.
Amazon hired hard two years ago and now has 1.6 million employees worldwide. But it has been plagued by economic instability, and the epidemic has given workers the power to grow while adding to occupational safety concerns. The Staten Island warehouse, known as JFK8, was surveyed by the New York Times last year, which found it to be a sign of difficulties – including unintentional shooting and downpouring – of employees due to Amazon’s work.
“The epidemic has changed the way jobs are done” by giving workers more power and employers, says John Logan, a professor of vocational education at San Francisco State University. “It is a question of whether organizations can take advantage of the opportunities that change has opened up.”
Standing outside the NLRB office in Brooklyn, where the vote was counted, Christian Smalls, a former Amazon employee who co-founded the union, pulled out a champagne bottle in front of a group of followers and printed it. “For the first Amazon partnership in American history,” he was delighted.
Amazon said it was reviewing its options, including opposing “inappropriate and improper” practices by the NLRB in filing a lawsuit against Amazon in federal court last month.
In that case, the NLRB asked the judge to compel Amazon to expedite the redress of “unfair practices” that took place when Amazon fired its contractor. Amazon argued in court that the labor union had abandoned the “political neutrality of their office” by issuing the document before the election.
Amazon will need to ensure that any unwarranted allegations of harassment disrupt the so-called laboratories necessary for fair elections, said Wilma B. Liebman, chairman of the NLRB under the leadership of President Barack Obama.
President Biden was “delighted to see workers making sure their voices were heard” at Amazon’s venue, Jen Psaki, a press secretary at the White House, told reporters. “They strongly believe that every employee in every state should make a free and fair choice to join the organizations,” he said.
A close question facing the working class and other development teams is how they can help the founders of the Amazon Labor Union cope with the potential consequences of the consequences and discuss first aid, such as providing support and legal expertise.
“The company is appealing, dragging it – it will be a constant battle,” said Gene Bruskin, a long-time organizer who contributed to the final success of the staff at this level, at Smithfield’s Brewery in 2008, and took action. casually advised working at Staten Island. “The union needs to know how to help them.”
Sean O’Brien, the new president of the 1.3 million members of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, said in a statement Thursday that the alliance was ready to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to unite Amazon and partner with various other organizations and move forward. groups.
“We have a lot of friends at work,” said Mr. O’Brien. “We have community groups. It will be a great union. ”
The climate of fear created by the critical review of the yields published by The Times in JFK8 has been a major boost to the consolidation of the partnership, which began in earnest about a year ago. The Amazon site provided support to workers during the epidemic but it fired workers and had poor communication and expertise so that employees unknowingly lost their jobs or lost profits.
For some employees, the stress of working in a warehouse during Covid was a shocking factor that led them to take action. Mr Smalls, President of the Amazon Labor Union, said he was shocked in March 2020 when he met a colleague who was ill. He asked the authorities to close the facility for two weeks. The company fired him after he helped lead security measures at the end of March that year.
Amazon said at the time it had taken “major steps” to keep workers safe, including more cleanliness and transparency. It also alleged that it fired the Smalls for violating social media guidelines and for taking them to social gatherings even in private.
A staff member at the Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Ala., Strongly opposed the retailer’s decision in its first election last year, Mr. Smalls and Derrick Palmer, a fellow Amazon employee, decided to form a new union, the Amazon Labor Union. .
While preparations in Alabama included advanced techniques, with progressive aides such as Senator Bernie Sanders visiting the region, organizers at JFK8 benefited from staying indoors.
For months, they bought buses outside the warehouse, roasted meat at a butcher’s shop, and sometimes even in a pan. (The vendors said they were disappointed with Covid on their first election in Alabama.)
He also filed a series of lawsuits against the NLRB, alleging that Amazon violated their rights. The labor union found fit in a number of cases, including one in which Amazon established an international agreement to allow workers to work on the site.
At times, the Amazon Labor Union was stunted. The Labor Board confirmed this fall that the new board, which had been collecting signatures from months of voting candidates for the month, had not shown enough support for the election. But the developers kept trying, and by the end of January they had collected enough signatures.
Amazon earned its minimum payment of $ 15 per hour for advertising and other public services. The company also launched an anti-union campaign, sent employees text messages and ordered them to attend anti-union meetings. He spent $ 4.3 million on anti-union counselors across the country last year, according to an annual report Thursday by the Department of Labor.
In February, Mr Smalls was arrested on the spot after a manager allegedly entered the premises illegally by delivering food to co-workers and calling the police. Two of the current staff members were also arrested at the time, which appears to have sparked interest in the alliance.
The difference in the results of Bessemer and Staten Island could indicate differences in reception of organizations in the two states – about 6 percent of Alabama workers and union members, compared to 22 percent in New York – as well as differences in mail delivery. the choice is one that is made individually.
But it can also show the benefits of preparation through an independent, staff-led partnership. In Alabama, union officials and professional developers were still barred from operating under a union agreement. But in Staten Island, a large part of the corporate leadership and developers were current employees.
“What we were trying to say all along was that having employees inside is a very powerful tool,” said Mr. Palmer, who makes $ 21.50 an hour. “People didn’t believe it, but you can’t beat the workers who are preparing for the other workers.”
The Amazon Labor Union’s independence also seemed to undermine anti-union rhetoric in Amazon, which made the union a “third party” affiliate.
On March 25, workers at JFK8 began queuing outside the tent in the parking lot to vote. And after five days of voting, he cast his vote to form the first coalition to carry out Amazon operations in the United States.
Another election, which was brought back by the Amazon Labor Union in the vicinity of Staten Island, is expected to take place in late April.
Jodi Office supported reports.


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Nokia the smart phone brand as we know it has come to an end after its acquisition by Microsoft. Now they have started a new chapter by introducing the Nokia N1, its first Android tablet that runs on the latest Android 5.0 Lollipop. Running on top is its Z Launcher that’s fairly easy to use.
The N1 features a 7.9″ IPS display that does 2048×1536 resolution, which is similar to the iPad mini 2 and Xiaomi Mi Pad. To protect it form unintentional abuses, the front is toughen with Gorilla Glass 3. The exterior uses a one piece aluminium design which comes in either Natural Aluminum or Lava Gray colours. It does resembles closely with the iPad mini and it is slightly thinner at 6.9mm.
Powering the device is Intel’s 64-bit 2.3GHz Atom Z3580 processor that’s accompanied with 2GB of RAM, which is the same powerhouse as ASUS Memo Pad 8. Storage wise it gets 32GB capacity but it is non-expandable.
The Nokia N1 is WiFi only, supporting dual WiFi channels in 802.11a/b/g/n/ac and it also comes with Bluetooth 4.0. Weighing 318 grams, it is juiced up with a 5,300mAh capacity battery. The bottom features a pair of stereo speakers and like other Android devices, it connects and charge using micro USB but it uses a Type C design that’s reversible.
Nokia hasn’t been particularly successful with Android and its Nokia X project was a flop in the face of better Android smart phones at competitive prices. With Nokia embarking on its own, the N1 might stand a chance as it runs the latest OS along with a promising new launcher. The Nokia N1 will be sold starting in China at US$249 (about RM836) and this potentially can give the Mi Pad a run for its money.

domain: news


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Row over speed limits on German motorways takes environmental twist
CGTN Europe • 2m 58s
🛣 When European nations added speed limits in the 1970s to tackle rising traffic deaths, Germany surprised the world by not following the trend.
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Just as Home Depot has made life miserable for local hardware stores from coast to coast, Countrywide Credit Industries Inc. wants to take market share from lenders across the country.
The Calabasas, Calif.-based company is spending $40 million annually to make a name for itself, including $20 million in media advertising. As a first step, it has begun to sponsor a televised seniors golfing tournament, the Tradition.
Countrywide is not alone in the mortgage business in trying to develop a brand image. Fleet Mortgage Group, for example, has decided to focus on creating a regional identity. And Fannie Mae, which does not sell to consumers, is nevertheless campaigning to demystify its role in financing homes.
Whether an investment as large as Countrywide's can pay off is not clear, in the view of several lenders. Creating a national brand identity in the mortgage business may be particularly tough, because prospective customers go many years between thoughts about a loan.
But Countrywide executives believe survival depends on having an identity that differentiates it from other lenders, said Andy Bielanski, managing director for marketing.
"You don't do an event like the Tradition and try to determine a month later whether it was successful," he said. "We're in year two of what will probably be a 10-year adventure."
Countrywide has grown rapidly, largely by cultivating conventional referral sources, notably real estate brokers. Increasingly savvy consumers, however, are taking a bigger role in finding their own lenders, making it important to Countrywide that consumers know it independently, Mr. Bielanski said.
That's where national radio and cable TV advertising and sponsorship of major events come in. Mr. Bielanski said that when consumers finally are looking for a mortgage and prepare a short list of lenders, Countrywide wants to be on that list.
The challenge in branding is more than just creating awareness, said Larry Chiagouris, managing director of CDB Research and Consulting, a mortgage marketing consulting firm in New York.
"The process is to make people aware that you exist," Mr. Chiagouris said. "Then make them aware of what you stand for. Then make them a customer."
Countrywide is further along in developing national brand awareness than any other mortgage lender, he said, but still needs to hone its message.
A marketing executive struggled in an interview to say what Countrywide stands for in nearly as succinct terms as he used for some of the few branding success stories in financial services. Visa is known for availability, said David R. Doyle, Countrywide first vice president for consumer marketing, just as American Express is known for membership and Charles Schwab is known for low-cost transaction accounts.
He said Countrywide stands for "the absolute best value in home loans with a process that is very easy."
The first step in creating a brand identity is an introspective look at one's business, said Mr. Chiagouris, whose CDB Research is developing a national data base to benchmark how strongly consumers identify with the major names in mortgage lending.
By asking themselves what they do well today and what they are capable of doing well tomorrow, many mortgage executives will conclude that their best bet is to work toward regional brand identity.
"Not everyone has to play on a national stage," Mr. Chiagouris said.
Fleet Mortgage Group in Columbia, S.C., a unit of Fleet Financial Group in Boston, is taking a different approach. It decided last year to retreat from the national stage and consolidate in the Northeast.
Where Fleet Banks dot the landscape-in New England, New York, and New Jersey-Fleet at least has good name recognition, said Nancy Boles, senior vice president for sales and marketing in Fleet Mortgage's consumer direct business. But making itself known around the rest of the country was a struggle. So Fleet Mortgage sold three dozen retail offices last year in states without Fleet Bank offices.
Creating strong brand identity is more important than ever, Ms. Boles said, because most large real estate firms now have captive mortgage companies. Rather than a rich source of referrals, real estate brokers increasingly are competitors.
But if Fleet Mortgage creates an effective brand identity, that identity will be in Fleet Bank's backyard and it will come in part by hitching the mortgage company more closely to the bank and other units of Fleet Financial.
As an example, Ms. Boles said collateral material is being redesigned to resemble other Fleet material more closely.
"Most of our customers come into us completely independently of the bank," she said, but they know and trust the Fleet name because of the bank.
In contrast to Countrywide's gargantuan marketing budget, Fleet Mortgage will spend $3.5 million this year to support its retail, wholesale, and correspondent businesses, which did $22 billion in originations last year.
The increasing need for brand identification may actually return an advantage to smaller institutions that are known in their own communities, Ms. Boles said.
Few lenders are likely to try to match Countrywide's effort in creating a national brand identity, she said, because it is so expensive.
"I believe that if anyone can pull this off, (Countrywide) can," she said. "But I don't have 100% confidence."
And the effort may not be worth it, at least according to one competitor.
Customers are interested in rates, closing costs, and convenience, said Douglas A. Smith, senior vice president for marketing mortgages with Barnett Bank in Jacksonville, Fla.
"Very rarely does name recognition come in," he said, noting that more than half the mortgage volume nationally is brought in through small, independent brokers. Still, he said, Countrywide deserves credit for picking a strategy-selling directly to consumers-and focusing intently on it, while most other big lenders are more scattershot.
The Federal National Mortgage Association formally adopted its longtime nickname, Fannie Mae, as its business name last September. It introduced a new logo last year, depicting a house, to make clear the company's association with homeownership. And it recapitalized the Fannie Mae Foundation with $350 million in Fannie Mae stock, boosting the nonprofit fund's ability to disseminate consumer education information that will reflect well on the parent company.
Clearer identification of Fannie Mae won't boost revenue or profitability, but it may head off troublesome misrepresentations of the company's business and powers, said John Buckley, senior vice president for communications.
"The history of large institutions in America dictates that one be as unmysterious as possible," Mr. Buckley said. "As the largest financial institution in the country and the largest corporation in terms of assets, it's critical that people have an understanding of the services we provide and the work that we do."


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Microsoft reported a sharp drop in profit for fiscal Q3 as performance in its cloud business, which it has touted as the next growth driver, couldn’t make up for the continued decline of its PC group.
The personal computer group, the company’s largest division, saw revenue rise just one per cent to $9.46 billion, with Windows OEM revenue falling two per cent in constant currency terms. While sales of its Surface tablet line jumped 61 per cent (constant currency) to $1.1 billion, revenue from its dwindling phone business dropped 46 per cent (to $662 million).
Microsoft sold just 2.3 million Lumia handsets last quarter, compared with 8.6 million sales during the same quarter a year ago, which means that Lumia sales have plummeted by 73 per cent year-over-year, and by 49 per cent compared with last quarter’s 4.5 million sales.
And sales of Microsoft’s non-Lumia handsets (low-cost feature phone range, inherited from Nokia) also declined, falling to 15.7 million last quarter, compared with 24.7 million a year ago.
“Phones continued their tail-spin, leaving the question with regards to what Microsoft will do with its consumer ecosystem wide open,” wrote Radio Free Mobile’s Richard Windsor in an analyst note.
The group’s operating profit, however, jumped 57 per cent year-on-year to $1.65 billion.
Revenue in its intelligence cloud unit, which includes the Azure cloud business and server software, rose three per cent to $6.1 billion. Azure revenue was up 120 per cent (constant currency), and it said enterprise mobility customers more than doubled year-on-year to 27,000.
The cloud group’s operating profit fell 14 per cent to $2.2 billion.
The productivity and business process group also posted one per cent revenue growth to $6.52 billion. Office commercial products and cloud services revenue grew seven per cent. The group’s operating profit was down seven per cent to $3 billion.
The company’s net profit for the quarter ending 31 March dropped 25 per cent to $3.76 billion from a year ago, with revenue falling 5.5 per cent to $20.53 billion.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has been pushing what he calls a “mobile first, cloud first” strategy for the past two years.
The company said its “commercial cloud” business, which includes Azure and Office 365 applications for business customers, is on track to earn $10 billion a year with the goal of hitting $20 billion in fiscal year 2018.
Analysts suggest that it created the numbers for the “commercial cloud”, which is not the same as its “intelligent cloud”, to be able to compare itself to rival Amazon Web Services, which is the market leader in cloud services.


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The campaign is to demand “a fashion industry that conserves and restores our environment and gives people, especially women, a voice. An industry where dignity in work is the standard and not an exception.”
During the week Fashion Revolution will also reveal the findings of The Fashion Transparency Index 2019. The index “reviews and ranks 200 of the biggest global fashion and apparel brands and retailers according to their level of supply chain transparency”. We'll be publishing the results of this on our website.
Fashion Revolution was started in response to the Rana Plaza factory collapse in Bangladesh which killed over a thousand garment workers, and it runs Fashion Revolution Week on the anniversary of the disaster each year.


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Posted 八月 2, 2016
In contrast to the sharp fall in Japan’s imports of kitchen furniture in April, May saw an equally sharp increase bringing shipments up to around the average for the year to date, ITTO reports.
Year-on-year May imports of wooden kitchen furniture rose 7.5% and month on month May 2016 imports were up 9.5% on levels in April.
Vietnam shippers dominate Japan’s imports of wooden kitchen furniture followed by the Philippines. The surprise in May was that Indonesia replaced China as the third largest supplier.
May imports of wooden kitchen furniture from Vietnam were up 7% month on month with the Philippines posting a 26% rise in shipments and Indonesia seeing shipments rise 7%.
Germany features as the top non-Asian supplier of wooden kitchen furniture and in May was joined for the first time by Slovenia.


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Scotmid Co-operative is piloting an eco-friendly scheme that will reward customers for recycling soft drink cans and plastic bottles.
As part of its Recycle and Reward initiative, the society has unveiled a reverse vending machine, which will trial for a three-month period at its South Queensferry store.
The device, produced by Tomra Sorting, means customers can return plastic and aluminium soft drink containers purchased at the South Queensferry store and receive rewards in exchange. They can choose between having 10p off their shopping bill and donating the amount to charity Keep Scotland Beautiful.
Scotmid hopes the scheme will reduce litter, improve the quality and quantity of recycled materials and increase opportunities for the public to recycle.
In June the Scottish government launched a consultation to explore options for a deposit return scheme on beverage containers.
Scotmid chief executive John Brodie said: “Scotmid are really excited about launching this progressive initiative in our South Queensferry store – it matches our core values and principles as an ethical community retailer.
“Reverse vending machines have helped to transform recycling habits in Norway, Denmark and Germany and we believe that can also happen here in Scotland.
“Reducing the amount of plastic that ends up in landfill and the decreasing the volume of litter found in Scotland’s streets, countryside and coastlines are the key objectives of not only the Scottish government but all responsible retailers.
“We’re proud to have already forged a new partnership with Keep Scotland Beautiful and we look forward to seeing the initiative help to achieve the objective of a beautiful Scotland.”
Keep Scotland Beautiful campaigns to improve Scotland’s environment. It runs provide environmental campaigns, services and practical initiatives to help the nation tackle environmental issues. This autumn, the charity will launch a new campaign, Upstream Battle, to reduce litter and promote recycling.
Derek Robertson, chief executive of Keep Scotland Beautiful, said: “We’re delighted to be partnering with Scotmid on this exciting initiative.
“Litter is an increasing problem in Scotland and we believe people must change their behaviour and do the right thing with their cans and bottles.
“We hope it will help encourage people to make recycling part of their everyday activities, removing the opportunity for single-use items like plastic bottles to become litter on land and in water.
“80% of litter in our seas starts life on land, and this vending machine is a great opportunity to show people they can take action on a local level to help keep Scottish communities clean, green and sustainable.”


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The nature of the coronavirus pandemic has heightened everyone's stress levels, which makes each public encounter that much more riddled with anxiety, as evidenced by the recent video captured in a Kroger supermarket. In the video, one couple decides to try stocking up on MTN DEW — though Kroger has put in place rules to spread their products out so that all have the opportunity to purchase them and limiting the number of items an individual can purchase, as to avoid unnecessary supply-and-demand issues. Between the unexpected limitations and high-stress situation, the encounter resulted in an outburst of aggression and a number of tossed MTN DEW cans.
Couple told they're not allowed to buy 552 CANS of Mountain Dew due to coronavirus rationing. Rage ensues. from r/PublicFreakout
Saturday morning, Kroger announced it would be giving bonuses to all grocery, supply chain, manufacturing, and customer service customers as a result of working during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. According to a statement from the chain, full-time associates are receiving $300 while part-time associates are getting $150.
"Grocery workers are on the frontlines, ensuring Americans have access to the food and products they need during this unprecedented pandemic," Kroger CEO Rodney McMullen said the statement. "Our associates are working around the clock to keep our stores open for our customers. I am incredibly grateful for all they are doing. The true heroes in this story are our associates, and we want to provide them with additional resources and support to help them continue their remarkable effort."
"In every decision we make, we strive to balance our most urgent mission – to be here for our communities when they need us most – with ensuring the safety of our associates, customers and communities."


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Bondholder Tidyco have made their largest capital investment of £150,000 in state of the art tube bending machinery and measuring equipment.
Tidyco are a family-owned and run supplier of hydraulic and pneumatic products to the UK rail industry. Supported by fellow Bondholder University of Derby they have invested in new equipment which will allow them to manufacture and supply additional product offerings to both existing and new customers. The new equipment was launched by Mayor of Derby Cllr John Whitby.
Tidyco were supported by University's Invest to Grow programme which is designed to support private sector businesses, predominantly in the form of loan funding, to grow and create jobs.
This further expansion project comes hot on the heels of the expansion of its warehousing, inventory and goods outwards section of its Derby premises in April 2017 which created 7 new jobs last year.
Earlier this year Tidyco announced that its export sales had grown by 94% in a six month period (August – February). This was following an increased focus on e-commerce and development of its online platform.
Phil Mason, Production Director for Tidyco said: “As a business, Tidyco is committed to a long-term growth strategy whereby continuing investment in additional manufacturing equipment forms part of company critical success factors. The manufacturing expansion further bolsters opportunities regarding new market penetration.”
Tidyco also continues to invest in its staff and has recently promoted Mark Newman to Director status for its emergency hydraulic hose replacement division. Additionally, Christopher Frain has recently enjoyed a deserved promotion to the position of Technical Account Manager.


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Curator Melissa Wolfe talks about the inspiration we can all take away from the Columbus Museum of Arts newest exhibition showcasing the work of home town hero George Bellows. George Bellows and the American Experience through January 4, 2014. This exhibition follows on the heels of a major retrospective of the artist organized by the [...]
Central Ohio Job Postings Up 8,000 From Last Year
Listen to the Story
It appears employers are trying to add more workers in Central Ohio.
Data from the global non-profit Conference Board shows, from the middle of May to the middle of June, companies posted more than 45,000 job ads in the region.
That’s about 2,000 more than the previous month, which is normal for a month when many students and graduates need jobs.
But more importantly, says central Ohio economist Bill Lafayette, the survey showed an increase of 8,000 job ads over the same time last year.
“Overall, Columbus has gained back more than 80 percent of the jobs that we lost in the recession,” Lafayette says.
Much of that, Lafayette says, is because of hiring increases in manufacturing.
In this latest survey, the most wanted workers were truck drivers, retails sales employees, and customer sales representatives.


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You might have thought that you’re lucky enough to not be affected by the US government shutdown that is currently in effect, but you may have forgotten one significant thing: the FCC is controlled (and funded) by the federal government, and that means it is, for all intents and purposes, completely nonfunctional at the moment.
So what does this mean for mobile tech geeks like us?
For starters, there is literally no one at the FCC who can help you with consumer complaints or inquiries. If you’ve been trying to get Sprint to drop an ETF charge, for example, and you’ve resorted to filing a complaint with the FCC, it is now on hold indefinitely.
Additionally, no one is around to approve new TV and radio licenses and, perhaps most disheartening of all, new equipment authorizations. This means that, unless a new phone or tablet has already gotten the green light from the FCC, it cannot be released for sale in the US until the government starts running again and the FCC opens its doors.
As things stand now, the number of people who are working at the FCC dropped 98%, from 1754 to just 38. Everyone else is furloughed. Even the FCC website got shut down, with a message that, “FCC is limited to performing duties that are immediately necessary for the safety of life or the protection of property. FCC online systems will not be available until further notice.”
Let’s just hope there weren’t any upcoming new device releases you were anticipating that will now be delayed![FCC via Android Police]


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March 9, 2013
The 2013 Salt Lake City Parts Plus Autorama was a good event this year, we were able to see some great vehicles, and of course what car show would be complete without the bloody chainsaw wielding zombie mad scientist. The Batmobile was present however Adam West wasn't anywhere to be seen.
GM had a booth showcasing the new trucks and other vehicles, but the majority of the vehicles were classics and custom vehicles as you can see in our images. We saw one of our favorite trucks from last year being presented again, a beautiful 1954 GMC, as well as many new projects on display. Take a look!


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BCC Quarterly Economic Survey Q3 2022
The BCC’s Quarterly Economic Survey (QES) for Q3 2022 shows a significant decline of key economic indicators, with weakening structural business conditions and confidence a cause for concern.
- Four in ten (39%) businesses believe their profitability will reduce over the next 12 months.
- Fewer businesses are reporting increased sales; only 33% of firms reported increased domestic sales, down from 41% last quarter.
- Measures for inflation remain at record highs as more than four in five (84%) firms say it is a growing concern for them.


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HCM CITY (VNS) — After launching in late April, Viettel's Mocha free messenger software has reached over one million users in Viet Nam.
Mocha, which will be launched on the international market, has attracted young clients thanks to applications such as voice stickers, deletion of sent text messages, listening to music with others, and money transfers.
In addition, Mocha users can send messages to Viettel subscribers who do not have Mocha software on their devices.
Mocha is available for iOS, Android and Windows Phone platforms. Last weekend, the software was launched in Haiti and will soon appear in the US.
Mocha has been allowed to register in nearly 200 countries and territories. — VNS


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KUALA LUMPUR: Petrol and diesel retail prices of 97 RON and 95 RON remain unchanged for the week of March 9-15.
The Ministry of Finance (MOF) said in a statement today that the price would remain at RON 97, RON 95 (RM2.05) and diesel (RM2.15) at RON97 per liter.
“To protect consumers from the global oil price hike, the government will maintain the maximum price of RON 95 at RM 2.05 per liter and diesel at RM 2.15 per liter, although the market price for the two products has risen above the current cap is price,” it said.
The MOF added that the government will continue to monitor trends in global crude oil prices and will take appropriate measures to ensure the continued well-being and well-being of the people. -Bernama
https://www.thesundaily.my/local/prices-of-petrol-diesel-remain-unchanged-from-march-9-15-ME10725898 Gasoline and diesel prices will remain unchanged from March 9th to 15th


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Every so often, somebody writes that Silicon Valley is dead. No, they’re not just over-the-top headlines searching for eyeballs. You’d be amazed at how many people really believe it when they come up with this stuff.
The one thing all those stories have in common is a single thread of evidence that something important is going bye-bye.
Continue Reading Below
Whether it’s the start-up culture, the risk-taking, the venture capital, the IPOs, or even a market segment like hardware, something’s always going away. More than one person called Facebook’s disastrous IPO the end of Silicon Valley. That may have actually been the most plausible concept yet.
Whatever the reason, someone is always predicting gloom and doom for the Santa Clara Valley’s high-tech mecca. The thing is, it’s all a bunch of nonsense, so I’ve decided to put an end to all the silly speculation once and for all.
Not only is Silicon Valley’s innovation intact, its venture funding fruitful, and its risk-taking culture as crazy as ever, it’s still the world’s leading engine for high-tech startups. And it hasn’t lost one iota of its mojo. Not a single one. And here’s the proof:
Four of the top 10 most powerful global brands -- Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Google (NASDAQ:GOOG), Intel (NASDAQ:INTC), and Cisco (NASDAQ:CSCO) -- and six of the top 10 global technology brands -- the same four plus Oracle (NASDAQ:ORCL) and HP(NYSE:HPQ) -- are Silicon Valley companies.
In terms of market capitalization, five of the top 10 global technology companies traded on U.S. exchanges are Apple, Google, Oracle, Cisco and Intel. That amounts to over $1.1 trillion in market cap, all headquartered within a 10-mile radius circle.
In 2012, 37% of all the venture capital in the United States came from Silicon Valley, compared with just 28% in 2000, the heyday of the Internet boom.
Silicon Valley’s share of all U.S. patent registrations has grown from 3.6% in 1990 to 9.1% in 2001 to a record 12.5% in 2011.
Although the number of IPOs is well off its peak during the Internet bubble, Silicon Valley accounted for 13% of all U.S. Initial Public Offerings in 2012, including those by international registrants.
Anecdotally speaking, Silicon Valley is certainly an innovative center for some of the hottest and fastest growing technology industries like mobile computing, cloud computing, big data, biotech, software, and of course, social media. After all, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter are all based in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Besides the critical mass of high-tech companies, the reason why Silicon Valley continues to be the focal point for technology innovation and startup activity is a unique combination of several factors:
The close proximity of universities like Stanford and UC Berkeley; the highest concentration of high-tech workers of any metropolitan area; the number of storied research facilities like Xerox PARC and SRI International; plenty of stellar law firms; and of course, the street that’s become synonymous with venture capital, Sand Hill Road in Menlo Park.
For those reasons among many others, the reports of Silicon Valley’s death have been, and probably always will be, greatly exaggerated.


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Survey: Businesses Cut 2.76 Million Jobs in May
BALTIMORE (AP) — U.S. businesses shed 2.76 million jobs in May, as the economic damage from the historically unrivaled coronavirus outbreak stretched into a third month.
The payroll company ADP reported Wednesday that businesses have let go of a combined 22.6 million jobs since March.
The virus forced employers to shutter offices, factories, gyms and schools, while demand from consumers for gasoline, clothing, airline tickets, hotel rooms and restaurant meals quickly vanished.
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B&N Pushes Back International Expansion Plans by Four Months
Publisher’s Lunch has turned up a new SEC filing that reveals that B&N’s international expansion plans have hit a snag.
According to the filing, the retailer is now saying that they will launch Nook Stores in more countries by the end of fiscal year 2014 (April 2014).
This presents a delay from B&N’s previously reported schedule, which was to open those Nook Stores by the end of fiscal year 2014. No, you didn’t read that wrong; this detail had already been reported almost a month ago. It merely confirms what B&N said in their press release when they released the most recent quarterly report (in August).
Update: It looks like I goofed; this is new news. I could have sworn that the delay to the end of FY 2014 had already been mentioned previously, but now I cannot find it.
Yes, it does represent the second time that B&N has delayed their expansion plans (which were supposed to have been completed by June 2013 and then December 2013) but it is still old news.
Just about the only thing that is new today is that this could cost B&N money:
This delay may entitle Microsoft to defer a portion of advance payments until the target expansion requirement is met.
The new Nook Stores are being launched in partnership with / under contract to Microsoft as part of the Nook Media investment deal. Microsoft had agreed to pay Nook Media $25 million a year for five years for help in "acquiring local digital reading content and technology development." The MS investment is probably also the reason that Nook Media has put more effort into developing the Nook Windows 8 app instead of updating the outdated Nook apps for OSX and Windows.
Paul September 9, 2013 um 1:13 pm
Their ebooks don’t seem price competitive at the moment either. I looked for an ebook on the Kindle, Nook, and Kobo and both Kobo and Kindle were $3 cheaper than the Nook store. (and $10 cheaper than the paperback).
Hence I bought it through Kobo and my local bookstore.
PL September 9, 2013 um 2:10 pm
Where was this "old news" reported, Nate? Note in the DR story you linked to. And not in the BN 8/20 press release you seem to think it was disclosed in:
Their 10-K filed at the end of July was the announced delayed to "the end of 2013."
And the new SEC filing, as we noted, was the first public declaration of a second delay.
Nate Hoffelder September 9, 2013 um 2:13 pm
Thank you for the correction.
Edit: I thought I read it somewhere, but obviously I must be misremembering. I have edited the post.
B&N Launches New Nook Windows 8 App – Now Available in 32 Countries – The Digital Reader November 25, 2013 um 12:02 pm
[…] of their partner. At last report B&N planned to expand the Nook Store into 10 countries by the end of the year. I think they met that […]


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Monday, 18 February 2013 15:53 Khin Myo Thwe
The Myanmar Garment Entrepreneurs Association has said that some local garment enterprises are changing their business tactics to appeal to foreign investors.
Dr. Aung Win, vice chairman of the association said, “Over the past month, 10 or 15 locally-run garment enterprises have been developing their business tactics to appeal to foreign investment. We should welcome this kind of thing.”
|Photo: Opal Int'l Co., Ltd.|
Local garment entrepreneurs have told Mizzima that hundreds of foreign garment enterprises have been attracted by Myanmar's tax breaks.
“Depending on the type of export goods, tax will be reduced to 15 percent in accordance with the EU’s Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), so enterprises from countries such as South Korea, Japan and Thailand are coming to discuss the investment in garment enterprise sector,” said Hla Win, a garment entrepreneur.
The potential investment by these companies will offer huge job opportunities, but the success depends on the allowance of joint-ventures, said the association.
“If joint-ventures are permitted, the entrepreneurs will need to construct factories completely," said a spokesperson from Myanmar Garment Entrepreneurs Association. "It would be beneficial for local entrepreneurs, foreign entrepreneurs and the government,” he said.
- Thein Sein calls for a minimum wage and worker protection
- South Korean garment businessmen to meet in Rangoon
- Mitchell says US keeping some sanctions


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Apple (AAPL) CEO Tim Cook said Wednesday that the company plans to open a brick-and-mortar store in India in 2021.
In addition to starting its own retail network, the iPhone maker will start online sales in India this year, Cook told shareholders at an annual meeting in Cupertino, California.
A big reason Apple hasn’t opened a store in the country until now is that Indian regulations require foreign retailers to source at least 30% of their raw materials locally, a rule that Apple has tried to seek an exemption from. The company has instead sold its devices through stores run by local partners.
Cook said Wednesday the company “needed to get approval from the government to go in there ourselves.”
“I don’t want somebody else to run the brand for us,” he added.
With nearly 700 million internet users and almost an equal number of people yet to come online for the first time, India is too big a market to ignore.
Apple has struggled for years to gain traction in India and price has been a key barrier to growth. The most expensive iPhones can cost more than many Indians earn in a year.
However, the company has been on a recent upward climb in the country, which is dominated by Xiaomi and Samsung. Apple registered its “best-ever performance” in India during the fourth quarter of 2019, according to a recent report by Canalys Research. Shipments grew by more than 200% year-on-year.
The company is still lagging significantly in the market — it finished 2019 in sixth place, with two million shipments to the country, according to Canalys. But that was still Apple’s strongest showing in India since 2013, analysts noted.
“Apple hit a home run with its pricing strategy on the iPhone 11,” Canalys analyst Madhumita Chaudhary said in a report released last month.
“The entry-level iPhone 11 [is] one of the cheapest ‘new’ iPhones in a while. The new iPhones have appealed not just to current iPhone users looking to upgrade, but also to value-conscious premium phone purchasers.”


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En nexpress - 'The story of your family history, the story of your favorite hiking trip – it could be anything. It doesn't have to be profound.'
Nhan dan - NDO—Two Vietnamese technology start-ups, namely Haravan and ELSA Speak, were selected to participate in the Google Launched Accelerator programme and given US$50,000 in financial support
Yahoo News International Women's Day first began in the early 1900s, when 15,000 women in New York City marched in a garment workers' strike to demand better pay, shorter working days, the right to
Yahoo News On what would have been his 89th birthday, Google Doodle is honoring Abdul Sattar Edhi, who went from begging for donations to his own volunteer philanthropic foundation to presiding over
Yahoo News Japan's Supreme Court has rejected a man's demand that news search results of his arrest on sex charges be deleted from Google, ruling that to do so would violate freedom of expression.
Yahoo News - Amazon.com Inc’s digital assistant appeared almost everywhere at the CES technology show this week in Las Vegas, even making an unexpected appearance on rival Google’s Android system.
Yahoo News - Alphabet Inc's Google quickened the pace of its push into virtual and augmented reality this week as its hardware partners announced new devices featuring the company’s technology at the
Yahoo News - SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The U.S. Labor Department is trying to bar Google from doing business with the federal government unless the internet company turns over confidential information
Yahoo News - (Reuters) - The U.S. Department of Labor said on Wednesday it filed a lawsuit against Alphabet Inc's Google unit seeking access to the company's compensation data and documents as part
Yahoo News - Taiwan-based electronics group Asus announced Wednesday it was launching a new smartphone which uses Google Tango 3D technology and allows users to experience augmented and virtual
At an event in New Delhi today, Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced a brand new program called Digital Unlocked, aimed at helping India’s 51 million small and medium businesses establish an
Only a fraction of the world’s languages are currently supported online. This is how Google hopes to fix that, using new technology powered by artificial intelligence. BuzzFeed News'
After weeks of criticism, Google’s search engine will no longer suggest to visitors that the Holocaust never happened. As Digital Trends reports, it appears to have removed a result for the query
Google and Amazon have both launched holiday promotions for their online movie rental services. You can head over to Google Play and grab any title (including a number of recent blockbusters) for
By Brendan O'Brien (Reuters) - The families of three men killed at Orlando's Pulse gay nightclub have sued Twitter Inc, Alphabet Inc's Google and Facebook Inc in federal court, accusing the companies
A Google product manager has filed a lawsuit against the company for its confidentiality policies on the grounds they violate California labor laws, according to a report from The Information. The
It’s your last chance to buy those Christmas gifts, folks. If you still haven’t found what you’re looking for, then at least you have one more opportunity to buy a hot gadget at a discounted price.


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A spokesperson for the company running a local shopping centre has confirmed the closure of one of its original tenants, but deferred questions about the expansion of a grocery store in the same complex.
Alison Miles Cork, vice-president of investment with Grosvenor Americas, has confirmed Hallmark Cards and Gifts closed its Broadmead Village Shopping Centre location. The store closed last month. “They chose not renew their lease,” she said.
When Broadmead Village Shopping Centre opened in 1991, Hallmark was among the inaugural tenants, she said. “Obviously, we are sad to see them go, but it was a business decision on their behalf.”
Miles Cork said her company had a “dialogue” with the store operators, but respect the decision to close. She, meanwhile, declined to comment on whether or not there are plans for Thrifty’s to expand its Broadmead location, one of 10 locations in the Greater Victoria area.
She instead deferred questions to the store’s corporate parent, Sobeys, from which the Saanich News has not yet received a reply following a request for comment.
Sobeys operates more than 1,500 grocery retail stores in all 10 Canadian provinces under retail banners that include Sobeys, Safeway, IGA, Foodland, FreshCo, Price Chopper, Thrifty Foods and Lawtons Drugs, as well as more than 380 retail fuel locations.
Last March, Sobeys’ corporate parent, Empire Company, announced a three-year transformation plan to save the company $500 million annually by the end of the 2020 fiscal year. This announcement came after the previous owner faced problems with the integration of 213 Canada Safeway locations purchased in 2013.
Sobeys’ acquisition of Canada Safeway also changed the local retail landscape, as federal regulators forced Sobeys to sell some of its new acquisitions including all four Canada Safeway locations in Greater Victoria to avoid running afoul of Competition Bureau requirements.


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You are here
Foxconn says Apple, Amazon to join its bid for Toshiba chip business
APPLE Inc and Amazon.com Inc will join Foxconn's bid for Toshiba Corp's semiconductor business, the Nikkei business daily quoted Foxconn chairman Terry Gou as saying on Monday.
The two US technology giants plan to "chip in funds", Mr Gou said, according to the newspaper. It
- CALL +65 6388 3838
- EMAIL email@example.com


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BEIJING (CHINA DAILY/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - The chiefs of 31 travel agencies in Harbin have been warned to strengthen their management of tour guides.
The move comes after the China National Tourism Administration called for a vigorous investigation into complaints of guides forcing tourists to buy ticket packages during trips to Snow Town, a popular winter attraction in the Heilongjiang province.
The warning was issued on Monday (Jan 15) by the Heilongjiang Tourism Development Committee, Harbin Tourism Development Committee and Heilongjiang Forest Industry Bureau.
"We will conduct a campaign to correct irregularities and promote impartiality in the winter tourism market," said Mr Zhang Xiaochun, director of the Heilongjiang committee's supervision and administration office. "Travel agencies and tour guides that break the rules will be published on a blacklist."
The campaign comes after video footage emerged online recently which showed tour guides asking tourists to buy ticket packages before they arrived at Snow Town.
In one recording, a male tour guide asked a group of tourists under his charge to pay for an attraction valued at 800 yuan (S$164). After a female tourist refused, he insulted her.
The guide also checked the tourists' mobile phones to prevent them from keeping recordings of the altercation.
Tourists in the group had paid 288 yuan for the trip, which included a meal, lodging and transportation.
In another video, a female tour guide appeared to pressure her group of tourists to buy a package valued at 1,680 yuan (S$345), including several items that most of tourists were not interested in purchasing.
When some tourists refused to pay, the guide told them they would have to stay outside the attractions and bear the extreme cold.
The female tour guide, surnamed Shang, is a member of the Harbin Kanghua International Travel Agency, according to a preliminary investigation by the provincial committee.
"The irregularities have greatly impacted the tourism market and even the reputation of the province," said Mr An Yuzhong, deputy general manager of Harbin Youth International Travel Agency.
Mr An added: "The measures promoted at the meeting will greatly help standardise the market order and protect those who keep observing the regulations.
"However, it won't be easy to solve the problems immediately and it needs the joint effort of the tourism agencies and the related government departments."
Mr An advised tourists to engage the services of quality travel agencies and avoid choosing agencies that offer tours at ridiculously low prices.
For example, a tour to Snow Town that is priced below 600 yuan (S$123) will mostly certainly have extra charges, he said.


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If you have yet to venture down to Northside to see one of Cincinnati’s most unique brewery offerings, you need to head down to Urban Artifact as soon as possible. They are the first brewery in the city to offer only Wild and Tart beer. The uniqueness of what they are doing is evident from the taproom’s location in an old church, to the addition of PH levels of the beer posted on their taplist in place of the now ubiquitous IBU listings that you will find at most breweries. They have a solid line-up of core beers that is starting to turn on even the most unassuming of beer drinkers to the world of Wild/Tart beers, and this morning they announced via press release two more offerings:
- Keypunch – 4.3%abv – Gose with Key Limes Added to it.
- Clothesline – 5.8%abv – A Farmhouse Rye
These beers also bring forth two beer series that the brewery will be offering:
- #TapTuesday – This is a series that after being kicked off by the tapping of Keypunch in their taproom on Tuesday, May26th will offer a new keg of beer every single week on Tuesdays in the taproom.
- Their Farmhouse series. The Clothesline is the first of their Farmhouse series, which will continue throughout the year and offer a new take on a Farmhouse style that changes with the seasons.
It’s all a vital part of the beer scene here in Cincinnati, and the number one reason that I like to laugh in the face of people who say that we are in an about to burst bubble of craft beer here in Cincinnati. Urban Artifact has shown that there are parts of craft beer that we as a city haven’t even began to touch. We have so far to go with our beer, and Urban Artifact has found a road that, although started by what Rivertown Brewing has been doing, was long overdue to be travelled fully. Get on board!


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The Nexus franchise is finally getting a little respect.
Google on Thursday pulled the wraps off its latest marquee smartphone, the Nexus 5, which comes loaded with high-end specifications and Android 4.4, or KitKat. But perhaps just as important is the confirmation that the phone will be broadly available in carrier stores across the nation.
That's right, the Nexus 5 will be sold through Sprint and T-Mobile, with only Verizon Wireless opting out of carrying the device. Updated at 3:26 p.m. PT: Google came back and confirmed that AT&T won't be selling the … Read more


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Something that usually doesn’t make it to tech blogs on the average day, but it’s worth a mention. One of the impacts of smartphone and other mobile devices large adoption is increase of thieves and pick pockets. This is naturally due to the easy prey this makes one without a break-in or targeted attack. With more and more expensive smart gadgets walking with people in their pockets and hands, theft gets easier and on the rise, even in the first world.
London has it’s moment, with personal theft increased by 14.4% from a year ago and as of Thursday this week, police have embarked in a major crackdown on this kind of theft. This has resulted in arrests of 209 for various offences. The patrol is quite visible, no ambushes, this is to let the petty offenders in London know authorities are after them, while at the same time increasing confidence of Londoners in their security against personal items theft.
7000 phones have been stolen over the past one month in the city, 80% of these have been iPhones while around 70% of the thefts involved mobile phones. Main targets are professional males in the ages of 20-30 around entertainment spots which is interesting as you would expect women to be more vulnerable.
via: Cellular News


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The High Cost
Research has shown that bad data is on average costing businesses 30 per cent or more of their revenue. Research firm Gartner has found that the average cost of poor data quality on businesses amounts to anywhere between $9.7 million and $14.2 million annually. At the macro level, bad data has estimated to cost the US more than $3 trillion per year. In other words, bad data is bad for business.
For startups in sectors like Internet services, transportation, and data analytics,. Which have found to have the highest rates of cash burn, losses from poor quality data has an unacceptable additional cost. Average burn rates are already high before we factor in these hidden costs: for pre-seed startups in the US, these are just under $18,000 per month. But that number gets bigger as the company grows: $75,000 for seed round companies, just under $400,000 for Series A, $500,000 for Series B, and $900,000 for later-stage startups.
Today, good quality data is so valuable. And so hard to come by, that startups which own large amounts of transparent, proprietary data of excellent provenance can secure nine-figure valuations on the back of it.
The problem really starts and ends with the data economy. Broadly put, the data economy is the production, flow, purchase, and sale of data. Data has created by data producers, such as ride-sharing apps, social media networks, telcos, banks. And a whole range of private enterprises. It has then stored anonymously in data storage centres. And often purchased by a third party who seeks to use the data for their own, separate business purposes. “Click farms” exist precisely because they can launder their false data through the data economy, with their data ending up purchased by legitimate businesses. Who then go on to make decisions often worth hundreds of millions of dollars.


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The March WUWM newsletter is now available!
March 19, 2013
The monthly WUWM newsletter for March is now available. Please visit the link below to read the latest in our member market news. Read article
WUWM Newsletter July Edition Now Available
July 31, 2020
LYLM events in September
July 28, 2020
The Board of Directors conducted an online meeting on the 22nd July 2020
July 27, 2020
SAVE the Date!
July 13, 2020
WUWM Newsletter June 2020 Edition Now Available
July 2, 2020


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UPDATE: The European Commission today endorsed ComReg’s proposal to lower the prices charged by incumbent operator Eircom for allowing competitors for granting access to its network.
During the summer, ComReg moved to reduce the cost of line share for alternative local loop unbundling (LLU) operators from €8.41 to €0.77 – a move that was roundly applauded by LLU players BT and Magnet.
However, for the third time, Eircom in recent weeks lodged an appeal with the High Court against ComReg’s decision to cut the LLU line-share cost. A hearing is due to take place next week.
Today, the EU ruled that from now on Eircom will no longer charge competitors that use its lines for costs on lines they do not use. The proposed measures it says complement previous important steps towards facilitating investment in infrastructure and enhancing competition on the Irish broadband market.
“I am right behind ComReg’s cost-oriented prices. In the short term, they will result in better prices for consumers, and boost competition in the long term so that consumers also benefit from a wider range of services,” said EU Telecoms Commissioner Viviane Reding.
“ComReg is doing good service to competition in Ireland’s high-speed broadband internet by promoting direct investment in infrastructure: investment that is crucial not only for Irish people to enjoy affordable and state-of-the-art access to the latest internet applications and services, but also for the Irish economy to remain competitive.”
ComReg wants Eircom to significantly reduce its current Full Unbundling Rental Price – a fee paid by an alternative operator for access to the last mile of Eircom’s phone or internet lines.
This process – known as local loop unbundling (LLU) allows other operators to use Eircom’s lines to provide broadband internet services to their own customers’ homes or businesses. This price reduction would prevent Eircom charging other operators for costs they would actually not incur in areas where lines are not accessed by other operators due to limited economic viability.
Although ComReg believes those areas should not be taken into account when setting the rental price operators pay to use Eircom’s lines, it nevertheless takes a small part of those lines into consideration when calculating prices in order to rule out under-pricing.
ComReg’s new approach to setting the wholesale costs operators charge for use of their lines (the costing model) would reduce prices in 2009-2012 to €12.24 per line per month for LLU and €10.38 per line per month for sub-loop-unbundling (SLU – a partial local loop connecting to the subscriber). Under the previous model, based on the cost of all lines, irrespective of whether they are unbundled or not, this would have cost €17.89 for LLU and €15.63 for SLU for the same period.
These price cuts build on earlier moves in June 2009 by ComReg, which lowered the prices charged by Eircom for granting competitors access to its broadband network and for migrating customers between different wholesale broadband products.
EU Competition commissioner Neelie Kroes said: “ComReg’s proposal is good news for competitors and consumers. Due to the proposed regulatory measure, alternative operators will pay less for access to Eircom’s network, so they will be able to provide more attractive retail offers. As a result, competition will increase and consumers will have greater choice and better prices.”
The news of the European Commission’s support for ComReg was welcomed by BT. “Broadband growth in Ireland has been slow,” a spokeswoman said.
“Facilitating competition via local loop unbundling (LLU) will not only immediately benefit consumers and businesses from innovative broadband services, lower prices and greater choice, it will also lead to the accelerated deployment of Next Generation Network (NGN) broadband services. This has proven to be the case in countries such as Germany, France and the UK, where competition from LLU has triggered the advancement of their NGN strategies.
“Given the barriers that exist in Ireland for an open and competitive broadband market, it is reassuring that two very respected European Commissioners are adding their support to ComReg in its efforts to open competition in the Irish market,” the BT spokeswoman said.
By John Kennedy
Photo: EU Telecoms Commissioner Viviane Reding.


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When photographer Amy Berg learned she was going blind, she thought it might be time for a change of career and began baking cookies for gourmet shops around town. Over time, Amy's Cookies grew into a business with over half-a-million dollars in sales that employs seven people. But now, just as she was hoping to sell the business and retire, she's suffered a major setback.
"I started Amy’s Cookies so I could be independent. And it worked for 28 years," Berg told Ability Fierce in an interview at her bakery in Brooklyn's Sunset Park."But now I’m having to close my business because Dean & Deluca owes me a tremendous amount of money - $71,000 and they’re not paying."
Berg's problems started when Dean & Deluca, a traditional New York gourmet shop was purchased by Thai real estate mogul Sorapoj Techakraisri, whose firm Pace Development Corp. acquired the chain in 2014 for $140 million with plans to turn the brand global.
But Berg says those global ambitions have led the new owner to neglect the store's flagship location in Soho, which became a culinary landmark shortly after opening in 1977.
"I’m mean it’s kind of ironic, I’m being forced to close by the company that put me on the map," Berg said.
Dean & Deluca was one of Berg's first accounts and certainly her biggest. She the business relationship started with a single cookie and quickly grew to orders by the pound.
Berg says the old owners used to taste everything and maintain close relationships with their suppliers but that ended after the company was acquired by Techakraisri. She reached out to Giorgio DeLuca for help after reading an article saying he had kept a stake in the company, but it turns out that information was incorrect.
"He had sold off his shares years ago, he didn’t have a stake in it. And he wanted to know how that information got into that article because he wasn’t very happy about it, because he didn’t want to be associated with these people and how they’re kind of ruining his baby. And then he advised me to get a lawyer," Berg said.
So she's planning to sue but she's also wondering if Techakraisi hasn't just taken a page from the current U.S. president's playbook and decided he can get away with not paying suppliers.
"I call him the Donald Trump of Thailand," Berg said.
Berg isn’t the only supplier who’s been stiffed, but she says her disability will make it that much harder to find buyers who can take the place of her main customer.
"I’d have to hire somebody to go out and get more accounts, that’d be fine if I had the money in my account from Dean & Deluca to hold me over until I was able to do that," she said.


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Website launches booking engine with major air carriers
LAS VEGAS SUN
May 19, 2003
Tourists planning visits to Las Vegas can now book air and lodging packages using most air carriers through VEGAS.com, a spokesman for the company said.
Howard Lefkowitz, president of the Internet site, said the expanded service was launched Thursday.
"It's a major step for us from a technical perspective," said Lefkowitz, who said VEGAS.com used to have an exclusive agreement with America West Airlines to package tours to Las Vegas.
Lefkowitz said when similar deals are completed with international air carriers within a couple of weeks, VEGAS.com will have relationships with 70 airlines to bring passengers to the city.
Most of the major U.S. air carriers serving McCarran International Airport are part of the VEGAS.com deal. One that is not is Dallas-based Southwest Airlines, the busiest carrier serving McCarran, which does not participate in Internet tour package deals outside its proprietary Southwest.com brand.
Lefkowitz said the VEGAS.com engine books only air packages with hotels and not airline tickets only.
VEGAS.com is a sister company to the Las Vegas Sun.


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Reptile Gardens announces final week of the season specials
As the tourism season draws to a close in the Black Hills, Reptile Gardens has announced special admission the week of November 26 through December 2, 2012.
During this final week of operation for 2012, admission is free with two cans of food per person. The items will be donated to the KOTA Care and Share Food Drive, in an effort to end hunger in South Dakota.
We've had such good success with the KOTA Care and Share Food Drive in past years during Mother's Day we decided to accept donations again during the holiday season. It provides a great opportunity to come visit our exhibits for the last time before the spring, while also donating to a great cause.
In addition to the special admission, all Gift Shop merchandise will be 20% off for those looking to do some holiday shopping. From jewelry to unique art and artifacts, the Gift Shop and the Jungle Outpost at Reptile Gardens have the perfect gift for everyone on your list.
"From stocking stuffer books and toys to Himalayan pink salt lamps, we've got it all" said John Brockelsby, Public Relations Director, "Stop by and take a look, you might be surprised what you find."
The hours of operation are 9:00 am — 3:00 pm daily. Do not miss this final opportunity to see our wild and wonderful creatures! Reptile Gardens will re-open in 2013 on April 1 for the Spring season.
- Crocodiles and Alligators
- Flowers and Gardens
- Insects and Spiders
- New Guinea Art and Artifacts
- Orchids and Tropical Flowers
- Reptile Gardens history
- Reptile Gardens News
- Turtles and Tortoises


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GoPro has announced new products in the past in September, but the action camera maker has postponed the calendar a bit this year and is teasing fans with an announcement coming out on October 1st.
In a short video posted on the company's GoPro website and on the company's Twitter and Instagram accounts, a handful of clips show what the next generation of GoPro shooters seems to be.
Attentive eyes will notice that the video seems to contain clips from at least two different cameras – possibly the flagship GoPro Hero8 Black and a 360 ° camera, which is probably the GoPro Max (a successor to the two-year GoPro) merger) ,
10.01.19 #ThisIsActionhttps: //t.co/1aFdFCvijE pic.twitter.com/LO1Uhdj3OnSeptember 19, 2019
GoPro has also set up a page on YouTube where the October 1 event will be broadcast live so fans can set up a reminder to see how the new campers are officially revealed. YouTube automatically adjusts to your local time zone.
GoPro did not release any specifications for the new section in the video, although the Hero 8 Black was able to record 4K resolution at up to 120 fps and 1080p Full HD video at up to 480 fps. In this case, it would lead to amazing slow motion videos. However, later rumors suggest that Hero 8 Black will shoot 4K images at up to 60 frames per second, even if the resolution is reduced to 1080 frames per second.
Leaked images also gave us an insight into possible new accessories that will be delivered with the new cameras, including LED lights, an external display and a microphone.
However, we do not know much about the upcoming GoPro product range and will present you with all the latest news here. Watch this room.
The price written on this page is true as the time it is written. It may change at any moment.


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The prices of onions, pepper, tomatoes, groundnut oil, and many other food items witnessed a significant surge across markets in Lagos State as traders lament the incessant increase in the price of food items in the country.
This is according to the latest market survey, carried out by Nairalytics Research – the research arm of Nairametrics.
The price of a big bag of pepper, which sold for an average of N15,000 two weeks ago as a result of a 17.6% increase has now jumped further by 66.7% to sell for an average of N25,000. The medium-sized bag also increased by 30.8%, as it currently sells for an average of N17,000.
READ: CBN blames herdsmen and bandits for galloping inflation rate
Also, a big bag of onions that sold for an average of N18,250 two weeks ago, has now increased by 50.7% to sell for an average of N27,500. The price of onions is, however, still expected to trend higher as the association of onion sellers is set to stop bringing onions into the southern part of the country, starting Monday, 14th June 2021.
This report contains information on items that witnessed price increase, price decrease, as well as information on special markets and market insights.
READ: Why onion has become the “new gold” in Nigeria
Items that witnessed price increase
- A big bag of bush mango seed, popularly known as ogbono seed, now sells for an average of N150,000. This represents a 25% increase compared to N120,000 recorded last month.
- A basket of tomatoes witnessed a further spike in price, as the biggest basket of round-shaped tomatoes currently sells for an average of N24,000, representing a 45.5% increase in price.
- A medium-sized basket of round-shaped tomatoes also surged by 50% to sell for an average of N12,000 as against an initial average of N8,000 recorded two weeks ago.
- Also, a big bag of pepper recorded a 66.7% in price to sell for an average of N25,000 compared to an initial average of N15,000 while the medium bag sells for an average of N17,000.
- A big bag size of garri (popularly known as garri Ijebu) is currently sold for an average of N25,000, representing a 62.6% increase compared to an initial average of N15,375.
- A big basket of sweet potatoes that was sold for an average of N6,500 two weeks ago, has increased by 15.4% to sell for an average of N7,500.
- A 25 litres gallon of palm oil spiked by 14.8% to sell for an average of N15,500. It was initially sold for an average of N13,500, while the price of a 5 litres gallon increased by 3.6% to sell for an average of N2,850.
- The price of a crate of egg recorded a marginal increase of 1.6% to sell for an average of N1,550.
- The price of a big bag size of melon increased by 8% from N43,500 recorded two weeks ago to sell for an average of N47,000.
READ: No more N100 a plate meal in Nigeria
Items that witnessed price decrease
During the two weeks period, only crayfish recorded a slight reduction in price, currently selling for an average of N11,500 compared to an initial average of N11,750 recorded two weeks ago.
Items that maintained initial prices
- A big bag of yellow maize still sells for an average of N25,000 while white maize sells for an average of N24,625.
- A 12.5kg refill of household cooking gas continues to sell for an average of N4,700 while 5kg stands at N1,900.
- A 50kg bag of Honeywell flour continues to sell for an average of N15,125, Dangote flour at N15,375, while Mama Gold sells for an average of N14,825.
- Also, a big basket of Irish potatoes sells for an average of N15,000, the same as recorded two weeks ago.
- The prices of juice drinks, noodles, beverages, bread, tea, have remained unchanged within the two weeks period.
- A carton of full chicken currently sells for an average of N14,750, Chicken lap (N14,750), while a carton of turkey continues to sell for an average of N18,833.
- A 50kg bag of white garri still sells for an average of N17,750, while yellow garri is also sold for the same price.
- A big tuber of Abuja yam sells for an average of N875, medium-sized yam sells for an average of N588.
READ: Food inflation rate in Nigeria surges to highest in over 15 years
Nairametrics sighted a massive influx of onions in the Mile-12 market and noticed there was no space to even display them, hence the trucks parked in the market with onions still in them.
However, despite the increased inventory in the market the price of onions still surged as traders tried to stock items in preparation for the impending halt in the movement of onions to the south from next week.
According to Nairametrics’ correspondent at the onion section of the Mile-12 market, Mr Lastborn, as he prefers to be called, said the new onions being brought into the market is sold for at least N30,000, whereas they were selling for an average of N28,000.
He attributed this recent increase to the Association of onion farmers, who have planned to stop bringing onions to the southern part of Nigeria, due to the killings, banditry and inter-tribal killings in the north and south.
Mr Lastborn, also suggested that the price of onions is likely to increase further when the strike action eventually commences next week but hopes it does not get as bad as it was in November 2020, when a bag of onions sold for as high as N100,000.
READ: Alert: Tomato prices are up by over 80% in these Lagos markets
Local palm oil and groundnut oil have witnessed a significant increase in price recently, as a 30 litres gallon of palm oil currently sells for an average of N16,000, while a 25 litres gallon of groundnut oil is selling for an average of N21,000.
According to Mr Jonathan, a major oil dealer at Mile-12 market, there are different types of groundnut oil in the market. Devon Kings is sold for an average of N21,500 while Super delicious oil is sold for N20,000.
In a conversation with Mrs Olaoluwa at Daleko Market, she explained that the incessant increase in the price of oil is becoming unbearable for the consumers because most Nigerians use oil, irrespective of the kind, that is palm, groundnut or vegetable in cooking most local dishes.
Nairametrics also sighted the new variant of tomatoes at the market, that is, the oval-shaped tomatoes, which sold for an average of N8,000 (big basket). The oval-shaped tomato is regarded as the Yoruba harvested tomatoes.
It is less red compared to the northern harvested tomatoes (round-shaped), which sold for an average of N24,000. According to Mr Yahaya, who sells tomatoes at Mushin market, most of the red round shaped tomatoes are brought in from Zaria and Kano.
He further explained that the oval-shaped tomatoes are grown in the west and are only harvested during the rainy season.
The price of melon increased by 8% to sell for an average of N47,000 across markets in Lagos State. While interviewing Mr Kelechi at Mile-12 market, he explained that the rainy season has contributed to the shock in price as melon requires intense sun to dry them.
Due to the increased rain at the expense of the sun, farmers tend to increase the price of melon.
Meanwhile, foreign rice still sells for an average of N24,500, while locally produced rice sells between the range of N21,000 and N23,000 depending on the brand. Less quality rice, with pebbles in it, is sold for an average of N19,000.
About Nairametrics Food Price Survey
Nairametrics Food Price Watch is a bi-monthly Household Market Survey that covers the prices of major food items in Nigeria, with emphasis on five major markets in Lagos – Mushin market, Daleko market, Oyingbo market, Idi-Oro market, and Mile 12 market.
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ETC’s Serbian distributor Studio Berar welcomed over 600 visitors through the doors of Belgrade’s BelExpo Center for an open day last month.
Representing ETC, Fulvio Cotogni and Davide Gabbani presented a full range of lighting and control equipment, including the Congo, Eos and SmartFade lines, Selador LED fixtures and Source Four automated and conventional luminaires.
“We were both surprised and impressed by the number of people who came to the day long event,” says Cotogni, who is ETC’s regional manager for southern Europe. “And they were of extremely high calibre. We gave hands on product demonstrations to professionals from across the industry, including freelancers, rental companies and TV studios. In fact, one conversation led directly to an order for Selador fixtures for a TV studio in Bosnia.
“It’s unusual for open house events to achieve visitor numbers anywhere close to this.”
The event encompassed Studio Berar’s entire product range across the 500 sq m show floor, so visitors were able to see video and audio products as well as lighting. There were also a number of workshops where visitors could discuss the latest industry developments.
“We had an extremely positive response from all our exhibitors, and the open day will certainly be repeated,” said Studio Berar’s executive manager Slobodan Većkalov. “The event demonstrated to our customers the customer support that they can expect from us and the manufacturers we work with, both before and after sales.”
Picture: Studio Berar


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Apple has promised to correct an odd Apple Store policy that was forcing developers in South Korea to pay 33% in commission, according to South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission. Developers in the region will now be required to pay the tech giant 30% in commission.
Apple to correct App Store policy in South Korea that was forcing developers to pay higher commission
According to a new report from The Register, Apple’s promise to fix the policy came after the Korean Fair Trade Commission (FTC), launched an antitrust campaign against the tech giant.
“If Apple’s voluntary correction is carried out well in the future, I think it will alleviate some of the difficulties of domestic app developers, and help app market operators and app developers communicate more actively to build a fairer and more vibrant app market ecosystem,” said FTC Chairman Han Ki-jung, via machine translation from Korean.
In South Korea, developers have not only been charged on the price of the app, but Apple included the region’s 10% local value-added tax (VAT) in the commission as well, adding up to 33%.
Now, in accordance with other developers around the globe, developers in South Korea will be required to pay Apple’s standard 30% commission. The change is expected to go into effect starting in January 2023.
It is important to note that although Apple has said it will forgo the 33% commission, the fact that developers have to pay taxes is unchanged. However, given that South Korea is turning into an important market for Apple, it would be beneficial for the tech giant to act in accordance with the region’s laws and cooperate with all investigations.
In related news, South Korea’s telecommunications regulator is looking into Apple’s App Store and Alphabet’s Google and One Store over suspicions of the app store violating the country’s in-app payment law. If the investigation suggests that the tech giants have been violating the region’s laws, they may have to pay a fine that could go as high as 2% of their annual revenue.


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In an article featuring actress Aishwarya Rai, Mahima Chaudhry and other models, a Chinese daily said on Tuesday that gold jewellery is highlighted in Indian women because of their black skin.
The article also stated that Indian women won't go out without wearing a gold nose ring, and that girls begging on roadsides have a "gold nail in their nose".
"In India it will be considered impolite if women go out without any jewellery. Among all kinds of jewellery, Indians prefer gold ones. Indians have black skin and wearing gold jewellery can highlight this feature," People's Daily Online reported.
According to the article, the Indian government is also planning to issue "paper gold" to persuade people to buy more gold reserved in banks.
Paper gold doesn't mean that it is physical gold, but is rather a piece of paper that acts as a substitute for physical gold. According to igolder.com, paper gold means you are a creditor of the corporation issuing the "paper gold certificate".
Though it's not in metal form many Indians are seen scrambling to get hold of it, thus reflecting Indian affection and reliance for gold, the state-run daily said.
The report also stated that in India men wearing jewellery is very common. "Many Indian men wear three rings with large pieces of jewels on them. In wedding ceremony, parents usually choose gold ornaments as daughter's dowry, which not only set off the beauty of the daughter but can also serve as a kind of property in married life."
The article came in the backdrop of reports that China is likely to overtake India as the largest importer of gold this year, Press Trust of India said.
According to World Gold Council (WGC), demand for gold in China stood at 417 tonnes, surpassing India's 383.2 tonnes in the first half of the year.
The demand for gold in China is increasing as more people are opting for the yellow metal as a savings scheme.
The Q1 results of this year showed that India is still the largest importer of gold with 209 tonnes while China's gold import stood at around 136 tonnes.
"China is a much bigger economy than us and their demand, especially for jewellery and investment, is growing. The country's own supply will not be able to meet this demand growth and the imports will rise," WGC Managing Director (India and Middle East) Ajay Mitra told reporters earlier this month.


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Borrell Associates has just released its annual assessment of the $34.4 billion Automotive Advertising category. “For 2018, we’re seeing a lot of red for just about every type of media,” Gordon Borrell notes.
How do things look for 2019? We’ve checked out the report and have some of the answers to share.
The report, with the ominous title “AUTOMOTIVE ADVERTISING TAKES A SHARP TURN,” pulls no punches.
“It’s been a tough year for automotive advertising,” Gordon Borrell notes in the opening paragraph. “For the sellers, especially broadcast TV, the bottom seems to have dropped out.”
For the buyers, “the cutbacks reflect lower new-car sales, flat used-car sales and greater cost efficiency in targeted marketing.”
It’s not that dealers are spending less on marketing. Rather, Borrell says, “They’re just spending less on advertising.”
In fact, marketing budgets are swelling, particularly for digital “services” that help them manage their own direct-to-consumer media channels in social media, email, and their dealer websites.
The result is particularly troublesome for radio, and downright alarming for broadcast television.
Total automotive ad spending this year is down 7.3%, to $34.4 billion.
For 2019, Borrell is forecasting a bounceback of 3.4%. But, Borrell laments, “2019 seems a long way off, especially for companies that still have their 2018 fourth-quarter numbers to hit.”
Then, there’s Borrell’s five-year outlook: Expect “low growth,” averaging 1.7% per year.
Correction: Expect it if you are in digital media, as nearly all of it goes to digital advertising.
“It’s all the result of fundamental changes brought on by the Great Recession a decade ago,” Borrell surmises.” That economic trigger forced manufacturers and dealers to rethink marketing expenditures and align them with what potential car buyers were doing and where they could be found. As a result, 67% of all automotive advertising now goes to highly targeted digital media, stealing from traditional print and broadcast channels that are considered less efficient.”
Further complicating matters is the fact that dealers are now spending 41% less to advertise a new car than they were five years ago.
“It’s gone from $888 in 2012 to $518 this year,” Borrell writes. “It’s now easier to hit a specific target, which means dealers can be more efficient with their ad buys.”
While “Mass” media still plays a role in branding messages, that’s now being challenged as video advertising migrates to the digital environment.
The new report has led Borrell Associates to recast its numbers to provide a picture of what automotive advertising might look like in 2023.
“These reborn forecasts point to striking changes in future spending,” Gordon Borrell says.
The new model predicts that, five years from now:
• Broadcast TV advertising will be significantly lower
• Radio advertising will be lower
• Cable advertising will be higher
• Digital advertising will be significantly higher
• Print advertising will be significantly lower than 2018 levels
“All of this points to a very different marketing landscape for the automotive industry by 2023,” Borrell concludes. “The advertising piece of overall marketing expenditures is likely to remain in the $35 billion-$37 billion range, but marketing services are likely to get far more attention as manufacturers and dealers spend more time and money on their ‘owned media’ channels.”


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From Nintendo to LG, it seems every major tech company has been dabling with 3D products over the past few years. All apart from Apple it would seem. Well it’s emerged that even the trendsetters can be bandwagon jumpers too, as newly unearthed patents today revealed Apple’s 3D tech plans.
Apple have apparently been working on a 3D camera for their iOS devices that will blow away similar technology by the competition. Capable of both facial recognition and facial gesture recognition ( i.e triggering a snap from smiles), the 3D camera would move Apple’s Retina displays into a whole new dimension. It’d make use of new depth-detection sensors such as LIDAR and RADAR “that will create stereo disparity maps in creating 3D imagery,” according to Patently Apple. The camera would also make use of “advanced chrominance and luminance Sensors for superior color accuracy.”
According to details in the patent, Apple weren’t looking solely at their iPhones, iPads and Mac computers in regards to the 3D tech either, suggesting that Apple have at the very least considered a dedicated 3D camera.
The patent, landing in the third quarter of last year, suggests that Apple are considering the tech for inclusion in products in the coming years, so don’t expect to see it in whatever form the iPhone 5 takes.
And while Apple may have looked into the viability of a 3D system, we don’t imagine the Cupertino company jumping at the chance of putting out a 3D product into a market that, so far at least, has given the third dimension such a lukewarm reception.
Still, if there’s one company that know how to build a circus of anticipation around an as-yet-unproven, unloved technology (as with tablets and the iPad), it’s Apple, and I can think of quite a few Apple fanboy pals who’d grab an Apple 3D camera just for the logo that would inevitably adorn it.
Via: Patently Apple


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Camping World Tops in Towable Sales in 2009
FreedomRoads/Camping World RV, the nation’s largest recreational vehicle retailer, was recognized for the fifth consecutive year as the No.1 seller of towable RVs by Statistical Surveys Inc. (SSI) in its recent 2009 annual sales awards.
This award comes on the heels of the retailer’s recent No. 1 ranking in motorized sales for the 2009 calendar year, according to a Camping World news release.
“We are very excited to be the leader in towable sales again in 2009,” said Roger Nuttall, vice president and CFO of FreedomRoads/Camping World RV. “We are proud of this accomplishment and are off to a great sales year in 2010 for travel trailers and fifth-wheels. We have great manufacturer partners and our goal is simple; increase our share organically in each of our markets.”
FreedomRoads/Camping World RV dealerships increased market share over the No.1 ranking in 2008. Companywide, 15,872 total new and used towable RVs were sold including non-reporting states to SSI. All U.S. dealers sold 150,322 towables in 2009.
Camping World RV also sold 6,262 motorized units, of which 2,567 were “new.” All U.S. dealers sold 18,854 motorized units in 2009.
“As with being No. 1 in motorized sales, the fact that we are also No. 1 in towable sales exhibits our desire to serve the entire RV community with quality manufacturers, service and parts,” said Marcus Lemonis, chairman and CEO of FreedomRoads/Camping World. “We are very proud of this honor and all the praise goes to our associates as well as the entire RV industry for keeping consumers excited and interested in our great lifestyle.”
Statistical Surveys’ awards are based solely on unit volume according to independent data gathered annually.
FreedomRoads/Camping World RV operates a network of well-established local and regional RV dealerships, RV maintenance/repair centers and RV rental stations.
Camping World is owned by Affinity Group Inc. (AGI), parent company of RVBUSINESS.com.


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Date: August 01, 2020
“The U.S. economy just saw it’s largest-ever quarterly drop.
The US economy contracted at a 32.9% annual rate from April through June, its worst drop on record, the Bureau of Economic Analysis said Thursday.
Business ground to a halt during the pandemic lockdown in the spring of this year, and America plunged into its first recession in 11 years, putting an end to the longest economic expansion in US history and wiping out five years of economic gains in just a few months.
A recession is commonly defined as two consecutive quarters of declining gross domestic product — the broadest measure of the economy. Between January and March, GDP declined by an annualized rate of 5%.


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It started out as a small microbrewery on an industrial estate in Fraserburgh, but now the global phenomenon that is BrewDog is expanding with a brand new pub – and up to 15 jobs – planned in the heart of Inverness.
The business venture from the multinational brewery and pub chain will see permanent residence taken up on Church Street, currently occupied by Ashers Bakery, and has been greeted with a lot of excitement.
A spokeswoman for BrewDog confirmed a planning application has now been lodged with Highland Council, with around 10 to 15 jobs to be created if approved.
The emergence of BrewDog in Inverness displays the rise in popularity of craft beer venues in the Highlands, with the Black Isle Brewery bar located around 200 yards away on Church Street.
Ashers Bakery will however remain in the city centre by relocating just a short distance away on Union Street, with bosses anticipating the opening of the new facility to take place towards the end of May.
Ali Asher, sales director of Ashers Bakery, said: “We have been looking to downsize a little bit and that was when BrewDog came along and we managed to find our own place just around the corner.
“Our new premises will still have a shop and a café and we will be kitting it out with a new look and new fittings – the kind of thing you would expect of a new café.
“This is a significant investment into the city centre and it comes on the back of other restaurants and bars coming to Inverness.
“We are also in the process of doing up our shop in Inverness Bus Station, with work going ahead this month, so it really is an exciting time.
“BrewDog are a great business and are a welcome addition to Inverness. There seems to be a lot of excitement surrounding the news.
“We are delighted with the way things have happened and where they are going, and we wish them every success in their new venture.”
Mike Smith, manager of Inverness BID, added: “We are very excited another major operator is coming to Inverness City Centre.
“This will no doubt add to the existing opportunities and experiences available to both residents and visitors. This offers something slightly different and shows the growing popularity of craft ale establishments in the hospitality sector.
“It is a great boost to the area and the ever-increasing Church Street.”


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Zerodha's Nikhil Kamath tops Hurun's self-made rich list 2022
19-year-old Kaivalya Vohra, the founder of quick commerce startup Zepto, is the youngest self-made entrepreneur on the list
Meet Kaivalya Vohra, the youngest Indian who made it to Hurun Rich List with net worth above Rs 1,000 Cr
Vohra founded Zepto along with his teammate Aadit Palicha who has net worth above Rs 1,200. Vohra and Palicha decided to start their own business after dropping out from Stanford.
Offline centres aren't a sign of edtech's failure, says Unacademy CEO Gaurav Munjal
Several edtech firms have set up offline centres in the past few months as traditional schools have reopened. Unacademy last week announced the launch of two offline learning centres in Kota, Rajasthan.
As edtech firms venture into offline classes, hiring war for star teachers is intensifying
(Unacademy did not respond to ET’s emailed queries on compensation.) It’s a figure that is emblematic of the peak the scramble for “star teachers” has reached. This is driven by venture capital-funded edtech unicorns expanding into the lucrative, offline competitive exam or test-prep market as, post-pandemic, students return to physical classrooms and coaching hubs like Kota.
View: The world is looking at India to show the way in EdTech
What is common among these edtech unicorns? The founder of PhysicsWallah (PW), Alakh Pandey, comes from a modest background in Allahabad, started teaching science in Class 8, soon started a YouTube channel in 2016 which became a hit, with the PW app registering 5.2 million downloads while its YouTube channel 6.5 million subscribers.
Newly-minted unicorn PhysicsWallah zeroes in on personal coaching spaceThe bootstrapped startup raised $100 million last week in its maiden funding round, led by WestBridge Capital and GSV Ventures, making it the latest edtech firm to enter the unicorn club, or those privately held companies with a valuation of $1 billion or more.
Edtech players go hybrid as online growth slowsCompanies including PhysicsWallah, Byju’s, Imarticus Learning, Cuemath, Vedantu and Unacademy are all in the process of either expanding or building an offline presence.
ETtech Deals Digest: Unicorn party on Venture StreetEdtech startup Physics Wallah and Purplle both turned into unicorn
Online learning platform Physics Wallah enters unicorn club with $100 million fundingWestBridge Capital and GSV Ventures lead the funding round valuing the edtech startup at $1.1 billionLoad More
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